


Season 4 Into The Shadows

by SamanthaEvergreen



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Action, Action/Adventure, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Christmas, Creepy, Dark, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, F/M, Family, Family Bonding, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Government Conspiracy, High School, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Romance, Science Fiction, Sibling Bonding, Siblings, Snow, Winter, Winter Break
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-17
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:20:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24237925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SamanthaEvergreen/pseuds/SamanthaEvergreen
Summary: One summer can change everything but can one Winter change it even more?It's December 15th, 1986 and The Byers have moved to Iowa with El. After what had happened last summer they have all been changed in one way or another. But as winter break rolls around their friends come to stay, but even away from Hawkins somehow the shadows follow after them and bring a new face with it
Relationships: Eleven | Jane Hopper/Mike Wheeler, Jonathan Byers/Nancy Wheeler, Joyce Byers/Jim "Chief" Hopper, Maxine "Max" Mayfield/Lucas Sinclair
Comments: 13
Kudos: 11





	1. Chapter 1

Welcome to my new fanfic Season 4, Into The Shadows.

Warning!

This story has spoilers for the Stranger Things books, Stranger Things: suspicious minds and Stranger Things: Darkness on the Edge of Town. Along with the first ST graphic novel and characters from both will be mentioned but not appear.

This is a ranted T story and may contain violence, abuse, suggestive themes, minimal blood, infrequent use of strong language if any of this bothers you please click off.

Thank you and happy reading.

1

Have you seen her?

November 1st, 1986.

A tall woman with red hair looked around herself as she stood on the sidewalk in the main street of the sleepy town of Hawkins Indiana. People walked around her hurriedly as they tried to get out of the cold, light snow starting to fall around her.

She let out a foggy breath before she crossed the street to Melvald's General Store.

A bell rang out as she pushed open the door and was greeted with a warmth that helped her racing heart calm. She slowly lowered the black hood of her jacket as she looked around. It was a small store but looked to be well stocked up as a few people milled around picking things up here and there. But she wasn't here to buy anything. No, she was here for answers.

She walked over to the checkout and waited for the older man to be done helping the blonde woman in front of her.

"There you go Mrs. Wheeler, have a good afternoon now," he said handing her the paper bag of groceries, "You better hurry home the snow is really coming down now."

"Thank you, Donald," the blonde woman said as she turned away from him, a raven-haired boy followed after her back out the door letting a breeze of bone-chilling air in before the older man turned to her.

"How can I help you Ms?"

"I'm looking for someone, and I heard they live here," the woman said as she pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket and as the older man took it he found it was a photo that had been ripped out in a hurry.

"Have you seen her?" The woman asked as she started to look around herself pushing a piece of hair out of her face nervously.

"This...this is a photo of Hopper's girl."

"Who is Hopper? Where does he live?"

"I'm sorry to say that he passed away last year in a fire, and she was taken to live with Mrs. Byers when they moved away from here," the man said looking back up at her.

"Do you know where they are now?" the woman asked, but her attention was drawn to the window suddenly.

"No she didn't tell many people I'm afraid, just somewhere only a few hours away." the man said following her gaze and saw she was looking at a man in a dark coat on the other side of the street who was talking to someone in a big white van. "Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"No, thank you though," the woman said, grabbing the photo and stuffed it back into her pocket before she started towards the door in a hurry.

"Are you sure I can't call someone to pick you up? The snow is turning into a storm now," He called after her but she didn't stop. Couldn't stop.

She stepped back out into the snow that like the man had said started to fall faster now. As fast as she could without drawing attention to herself, she started down the sidewalk for her hotel, but there was no use, the man had already seen her. It was too late and she knew it.

She let out a shaking breath as she sped up and looked behind her shoulder to see the man following right behind her, his head down a hood covering his face.

"Shit," she said under her breath and looked around herself for an escape, the sidewalks now empty, not even cars were driving around. But thankfully she found a light of hope a moment later as she spotted an alleyway, the sound of the footsteps getting closer now.

As the opening of the alley got closer she put on a burst of speed once more just as she turned into the opening and took off in a run.

She didn't dare look back as she weaved her way around boxes and trash, her red hair flying out behind her, before she ran around another corner of a building that she hoped would lead her to another street, a street with more people which meant only one thing. Safety.

But to her horror, she found a tall metal gate barring her way. She ran into it praying it would open but it was chained shut. She listened as the footsteps got closer and before she turned to face him she pulled out a knife.

"You're not going anywhere I see, not this time," the man said in a thick Russian accent.

"When are you going to realize I'll always find a way out?" She asked as behind her back she gripped the edge of the blade, feeling the pain before the warmth of her own blood starting to fall as she pressed the cut hand into the freezing metal of the chain holding the gate. "Realize I'll never go back."

"Ruby don't do-"

She didn't let him finish his sentence as she let the chain fall to the ground and she was able to push the gate open and slammed it shut, the lock bent out of shape as she let her cut hand touched it now keeping it from opening as she made a run for it once again.

The sound of the man hitting the gate in anger echoed out as she made it to the street, she pulled up her black hood as she hurriedly walked down the sidewalk, keeping her face turned away from passers-by. She knew that man would only be minutes away and fewer people that saw her face meant fewer people could tell him which way she went.

The inn she was staying in came into view then and it was only then did she let her breathing calm as she folded the knife back up before putting it in her back pocket as she walked up to the door and opened it.

She got in and closed it quickly after herself, and looked around trying to see if there was any sign of a break-in. But no. Everything was quiet. She could hear the TV going that the old woman who owned this place liked to have on in the next room over, and as Ruby looked in she found Mrs Berry fast asleep in front of it, one of the stories she liked playing.

Feeling her heart calm down more now she made her way up the stairs to her room that she had been staying in for the last week. She closed and locked the door. For a moment she laid an against the door and looked at her hand. The cut she had made almost gone, only a pink line showed that anything had been done to it.

She let out a breath before looking up at the wall that faced the bed where photos hung, alongside news clippings, pages ripped from files, handwritten notes. Red string connecting it all.

Walking over she started ripping it all down and tearing it in half and then again and again until it was nothing more than unreadable pieces. She threw it all into a metal garbage can, she paused a moment looking at all her work gone in a manner of minutes.

She closed her brown eyes for a long second before she went to the dresser at the other side of the room and picked up her lighter but stopped, a sound catching her attention suddenly.

She listened as she moved closer to her door and pressed her ear to the wood.

"And you say you didn't hear her come in?"

"No i haven't seen her, and I'm a very light sleeper so I would have heard something if she did come in ...is she in trouble?" Mrs. Berry asked.

"No, we just need to make sure though, so you more if you don't mind can we look around?" A male voice asked.

"Of course not, go right ahead," the older woman answered.

"God damn it!" Ruby hissed to herself as she stepped away from the door, hearing footsteps slowly make their way up to her room, as if they were trying to be quiet.

She went over to the garbage can and flicked on the lighter. She looked at the small flame for only a moment before she let it fall from her fingertips into the papers.

They caught instantly, the paper turning ashen in only a matter of moments and that was good because just then someone tried to open the door, but thankfully she had locked it as the door handle stuck.

Ruby felt her heart pick up then as she realized there was only one way out for her. The window.

She turned to her dresser and grabbed her bag, the only thing in the world she truly had, with her few clothes and money. Ruby threw it over her shoulder before making her way to the tall window. She pushed open the glass and looked down. A white van had parked just outside her room meaning her fall would still hurt but maybe she would get out of this without breaking more bones than needed as snow fell onto it.

Someone started to slam themselves against the door then, the wooden frame starting to crack and she knew it was now or never.

She didn't have any more time to think about it before she closing her eyes she jumped.

The pain was the only thing she knew for what felt like forever. There was blood in her mouth and she felt that something in her right arm and hip was broken and maybe even a few ribs. But she needed to get out of there. That was the only thing she knew right now, the thing she made herself think about.

Ruby opened her eyes and found she was facing up and saw the window she had just jumped from, two people looking down at her as snow fell all around her like ashes, one of them the man from before. She didn't have time to lay there anymore. Every part of her screaming for her to stop as she placed a hand on top of the van as she moved herself to slide down the window and onto the hood. The sound of ripping metal following after her.

She carefully placed a foot on the ground and found she could stand, the pain now almost gone.

She looked up to the window and saw the men were gone, but as she gripped her bag with white knuckles she knew they wouldn't be going anywhere as she looked down at what she knew was their van. The metal had been ripped in half and ran down the top of the van all the way to the hood, the glass spiderwebbed with cracks, red blood dripping into the snow. No. They wouldn't be going anywhere.

Ruby turned away with a smile as she started to run. She would be headed for the bus stop the next town over even if she didn't know where she would be going next but as she headed down another alleyway she pulled out the photo again and looked down at it.

Down at a little 12-year-old girl with a buzzcut, her brown eyes scared.

"I'll find you, Jane, if it's the last thing I do, I'll find you."

She may have lost all her other research but she still had this photo and that's all she needed to keep going, she could build everything back up again and that's what she would do.

Ruby placed the photo back in her pocket. Cold air whipped at her face as the sun started to set and Ruby pulled her hood back up and the sleeves down, covering her wrists and the tattoo that read 002.

AN

I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of Into the Shadows. Chapter two will be posted tomorrow. A big thanks for reading, and if you want to review and give me your thoughts and or any criticism or even ideas on what I could do please feel free, it always helps and makes my day.


	2. 2 On the way

2

On the way

Mike

December 15th, 1986

"Mom do you know where my snow jacket is?" Mike shouted from his room as he looked through his closet to no avail.

"Did you look in the laundry room?!" His mom called back to him.

Mike jogged down the stairs and went into the laundry room and looked into the basket but still found nothing. "It's not there!" Mike said.

"Look in the dryer."

Mike rolled his eyes but did as she said and still found nothing.

"It's not there either!"

"Are you sure," his mom said, coming in then and looking into the dryer he just had and found much the same he had which was nothing.

"Damn it," she said slamming it shut again. "Nancy, have you seen Mike's jacket?"

"No! Did you look in the laundry room?"

"Yes!" Both Mike and his mom said in unison.

They heard the sound of footsteps coming down the hall and a moment later Nancy joined them. "We really don't have time for this," Nancy said, "Everyone will be here in like five minutes."

"I know, I know, " Mrs. Wheeler said, "Okay Mike go look on the coat hanger and Nancy you go look in the basement just in case."

"Fine," Mike said and walked to the living room and stepped around the lazy boy where he did find his jacket but not on the coat hanger.

Holly was wearing it as she played with some legos as she sat on the floor, a little pink bag next to her.

"Holly, what are you doing with my jacket?" Mike asked, kneeling down to her level where he unzipped it and gently took it off of her.

"I want to go too," she said.

"Maybe next year when you're older, " Mike said.

"You found it?" Nancy asked as she came into the living room.

"Yeah Holly had it," Mike answered.

"He found it, mom!" Nancy shouted into the hallway.

"Thank god," his mom said as she came into the room with both their bags and it was just in time because just then the doorbell rang.

Mike went over and opened the door to find his friends and Steve standing in the midmorning light, a fine misty rain had started to fall that Mike knew would turn to snow soon.

"Are you ready to go?" Dustin asked as they all came into the living room to get out of the weather, "We only have like an hour before the bus leaves.

"Yeah," Mike said.

"Not without saying goodbye to your mother first you're not," Mrs. Wheeler said.

Mike let out a breath but faced his mom alone with Nancy.

"Now you remember what I told you two about talking to strangers?"

"Don't talk to anyone you don't know and never go anywhere with them, " Mike and Nancy said in unison. If only she knew what had happened to them for the last three years, she would have a bigger list.

"And?" Mrs. Wheeler said.

"We'll call as soon as we get there."

"Alright," she said and gave them both hugs, "I'll see you both Christmas afternoon, you both have 50 dollars to spend however you want."

"Thanks, mom," Nancy said as they headed out the door.

"Bye," Mike said as he closed the door behind them.

They threw their bags into the trunk of Nancy's and Steve's cars before they all jumped in and a moment later they were on the way to the bus station.

"I can't believe it's been over a month since we've seen them," Max said looking out her window as the gray world of Hawkins passed them by.

"I know," Mike said.

"You think Will is taller than me yet?" Lucus asked.

"Last time he was the same height as me," Max said.

"Yeah but you're a girl, your suppose to be shorter," Lucas said and a moment later he let out a cry of pain as Max hit him in the arm.

Mike smiled as he looked out the window, excited. He and his friends talked to El and Will just about every day but it wasn't like seeing them in real life. They had last seen El, Will, and Jonathan in late October for Halloween and they came over for thanksgiving, but Mike didn't count that since it was only for a few hours since Mrs. Byers had work the next morning.

But finally, they would be staying at the Byers house for ten days. Ten whole days he would get to spend with his friends and El like old times. Of course, he knew they were all different now. They were all a year older and had started high school, even El was going to school now. Nancy and Jonathan were in college. Nancy studying to be a journalist and Jonathan going into forensic photography. Even Mrs. Byers had a new job. But still, that didn't mean they had stopped being friends. After the stuff they had been through they would always be friends.

They pulled into the bus station that would be taking them to Blackwaters Iowa then and Mike snapped back to reality.

They all got out and made their way to the terminal where their bus waited, already having their tickets in hand. Everyone got on and started putting their bags away when someone they knew spoke.

"What are you guys doing here?"

Mike looked up along with everyone else to find Robin standing in the doorway, a bag in hand.

"What are you doing here?" Steve asked, "You said you were going to see your grandma for Christmas or could you not live a week without me."

Robin rolled her eyes so hard at Steve it looked like it hurt. "I am dummy, she lives in Elkader."

"Why are you getting on a bus to Iowa then?" Steve asked.

"Steve Elkader is a town in Iowa," Nancy said helpfully.

"Really?" He asked.

"I ready believed I would get a whole week away from this," Robin said under her breath as she sat down.

Soon enough the bus was packed with people, everyone sat down and got comfortable for the seven-hour drive there, and not a minute after 12 they started down the road. Mike couldn't help but think this Christmas was going to be the best one yet. At least that's what he had believed.


	3. 3  Meet again

3

Meet again

December 15th 1986

El

El tapped her fingers on her desk and watched as the clock on the wall slowly ticked away the minutes as the rest of the class listened to Mrs. Green tell them about the history of world war one.

She looked out the window knowing that her friends were on their way to stay with them for the next ten days and she knew that she couldn't wait any longer.

El looked up at the clock and focused, not just on their clock. No, it wouldn't work if it was just their clock she would have to do every last one in the school.

She felt the warmth of her own blood slowly start to drip and she covered her nose a moment before the room was filled with the sound of a ringing bell and in an instant everyone was up grabbing their bags and books, heading for the door.

"Well look at that, time really does fly when you're having fun," Mrs. Green said looking up at the clock a little confused "I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas break and I'll see you all back here January 6th."

El grabbed her bag and books from under the desk before following after everyone else, her hand still covering her nose.

Suddenly a hand on her shoulder stopped her only feet from the door and when she looked up she found the worried eyes of Mrs. Green on her.

"Miss Hopper I wanted to make sure you were alright, your nose is bleeding again that's what the 6th or 7th time this year."

"It's nothing, just a low iron count," El answered.

Mrs. Green was quiet for a long pause before she nodded, "Have a good holiday Miss Hopper tell your mother I said hi."

El nodded before she stepped out of the classroom, the door closing behind her with a click.

She let out a breath before she turned towards their lockers where she would be meeting Will. But as she got closer to where they always met up at she found him with people she knew all too well by now.

In the year and 3 months, they had been living here Jack and Matt had been one of the worst parts of the move besides leaving their friends behind, the two teens would make the juniors pay them every six months as to not get beat up. Though they never missed with her, not after the first time anyway after she had made books fly from people's lockers to hit them in the head. She was now known as The Which and people didn't talk to her much but she had a few friends who only hung out with her to see if she would do anything else, but she made sure she never uses her powers when over four people were around. Sadly Will hadn't been as lucky.

"So Byers where's the money? The money for the end of the year I need so I don't beat you up this time" Jack asked, one of his little Matt was holding Will against a locker as the other boy got right in his face.

"I told you, I don't have any money to give you," Will answered, "And I would never give it to you if I did!" Will hissed his last words right back at him.

"Fine looks like your payment will be a tooth."

El watched as the older boy balled his hand into a fist but she didn't let it get any further than that as she looked at a locker door and a second later it flue opened hitting him right in the face, Will just short enough for it to go right over his head.

Matt let out a cry of pain and stumbled back holding his nose.

"What the hell?" Jack said looking at the locker with his mouth hanging open.

El stopped next to them, making Jack look at her, surprise still in his eyes as she looked over to the locker he stood next to and this one hit him right in the face too just like his friend.

Without seeing what he did next El grabbed Will's hand and pulled him toward the exit where everyone was either waiting for the bus or their ride.

They both ran out into the crowd and looked around at the cars as the sound of footsteps followed after them. She didn't know if Jack and Matt would be stupid enough to do anything with so many people around but if she could question it…

"Mom and Jonathan are over there," Will said and as she followed to where he was looking she saw the old green car, the one that reminded her of Hopper's old truck with the smell of cigarette smoke but his had smelled of coffee too, theirs smelled like soda that Will had spilled once forever ago.

They both made their way over and hopped in a moment before Mrs. Byers took off and they didn't look back at Black bears high school.

"How was the last day of school?" Mrs. Byers asked as they turned out of the parking lot and towards the bus station.

"Good," they both said in unison.

"Well...that's good to hear," Mrs. Byers said, sounding very unsure but didn't push them.

"How was work? El asked, seeing she was still in her uniform, Joyce was wearing her blue police officers uniform, that made the older woman look taller in a way, maybe because she carried herself differently now.

"It was good, there's always a lot to do," Joyce answered.

"Catch any bad guys mom?" Will asked.

"Only if you count a man running down the street without clothing," she laughed.

El smiled as she watched the world pass them by, light snow falling, the world turning to a winter wonderland.

It was only another 15 minutes until they got to the bus station and El felt her heart starting to beat a little faster. She and Will both couldn't wait to have their friends over for Christmas. The house Mrs. Byers had gotten was two stories, with five rooms, big enough for all of them. El knew that the house would have been way too much for Joyce to get on her own but after what had happened last year Joyce had suddenly been getting a check in the mail from the government because they still kept them informed on how she was doing. El herself didn't care what the government knew about her, she was just happy that Mrs. Byers didn't have to worry about money anymore. They had even been able to get a white fluffy cat named Daisy.

They parked then and she and Will jumped out and made a beeline for the doors.

El couldn't sit still as they waited for her friends, for Mike to finally get there. She walked around the waiting room they had made their way too and watched as people passed her by coming from all around the country.

"I'm going to go rent the other car real quick," Mrs. Byers said as El sat down in one of the uncomfortable chairs as she watched the older women when over to the car rental.

"El is that blood on your sleeve?" Jonathan asked.

She looked to where he was pointing and found little brown spots on the sleeve of her jacket. "If I say no will you believe me?" El asked, looking at him sheepishly knowing she shouldn't have done with she did.

"Not by a long shot," Jonathan said, but she could tell he wasn't mad at her.

"I'm happy your powers are coming back but why did you use them?"

El looked over at Will a moment. They had both been dealing with bullying though Will had it far worse than her. But he had asked her not to say anything, stating he didn't want to worry anyone but she had made sure to keep her eyes on him and for good reason. He hadn't been able to make new friends, that was beside one boy that was his lab partner Noah. He was the same age as Will, with deep red hair and wore thick glasses. Anytime El saw them together it was like the other boy was hanging on every word that Will said.

Now he shook his head ever so slightly. "It was to make the bell ring a little earlier to get out of school," El admitted truthfully.

"El you can't use your powers like that," Jonathan said but he smiled all the same.

It had taken over seven months for her powers to even start showing again and it was a lot like when she had been 12. She could only use them a little here and there anything more and she would feel weak, but the more she used them the stronger they got.

"Okay, got the car, " Mrs. Byers said, coming back over to them.

"Which color did you get this time?" Will asked.

"Blue," Joyce answered just as someone spoke over the speaker.

"Bus 11 pulling in now from Indiana."

"That's them, " El said jumping up excited.

The others joined her as well all watching the doors and a moment later she saw the black curly-haired boy she loved.

She felt a smile spread across her face before she started running towards him and her friends.

She watched as Mike's eyes lit up as he saw her. He dropped his bag and moments later she was in his arms.

El let herself melt in his embrace, she had been waiting for this moment for over a month. To be able to look into his brown eyes, to smell his clean clothes and the laundry detergent that reminded her of his basement, to be in his arms, to kiss him again.

She pulled away from him a little and looked at him, into his brown eyes that reminded her of dark chocolate. "I missed you."

"I missed you more," Mike said and kissed her forehead.

"Hey the rest of us missed her too," Max said from beside them.

El pulled away from Mike and turned to Max. Her red hair had gotten longer the same with her own brown hair that reached her back now and the other girl seemed to have gotten a little taller too. They hugged for a good moment before El started to make her way to each friend with a hug and to see how they've changed.

Dustin had the same hat and smile but he was taller. Nancy's hair was cut in a bob that reminded El of a model. Lucas looked much the same as ever just taller. It seemed everyone was getting taller than her, still only 5,4.

"Okay everyone let's head home," Mrs. Byers said, handing the keys of the blue car to Jonathan.

El grabbed Mike's hand as he picked up his bag and everyone made their way outside into the falling snow, the sky growing darker that meant a snow storm was on the way.

El helped her friends put their bags in the back before they all hopped into the cars.

She, Mike, Will, Jonathan, and Nancy, got into the blue car and everyone else got into their old green car before they pulled away and started for home.

"So how have you been?" Mike asked, looking at her.

"Good, happy that school is over for a little bit," she answered.

"Me too," Mike said, "A whole week of not seeing Troy's ugly face."

"He's still messing with you?" El asked, surprised after the last time she had seen him.

"More like annoying. He went crazy after you broke his arm and no one believed him on how it happed and now all he talks about is conspiracy theories and he thinks you're an alien."

"Your kidding!" El said almost laughing.

"No he really thinks that and he keeps asking me weird questions and don't ask what they are."

"Now I need to know," She smiled.

"No," Mike said simply.

"You can't just do that," El said.

"Yeah I can," Mike said.

"That's not fair."

"It doesn't have to be fa-" His words were cut off as they turned into a gas station out of nowhere.

"Why are we turning here? " Will asked Jonathan.

"I don't know," he answered as the others parked and they did as well next to them.

They all got out and El went over to Max.

"What's going on?"

"Oh Lucas had to go pee and Dustin wanted a snack," Max answered as they walked into the station.

"Sounds like them," El said as her friends started milling around. Nancy and Jonathan going over to the drinks, Mrs. Byers looking at the freezer of pizzas and Dustin looked at the chips.

"How old do you think those hotdogs are?" Mike asked as she and Max joined him.

"I don't want to know the answer," Max said.

"Okay, how about that sandwich?" Mike asked instead.

Max looked at it a little closer with narrowed eyes. "Two weeks," Max answered.

"I would have said a month," Mike said.

"Fine how about that pizza?" Max said, "I think it has mold."

El turned away from them not really into guessing the age of mold and started to walk around the small building but her attention was caught by something outside.

A red-haired woman stood outside in one of the pools of light from a streetlamp. Her black jacket hugged her body as she put gas into an old truck. But there was something about her that made El feel as if she knew her….somehow, in someway...But she couldn't say how. A moment later the woman looked up and El could have sworn the other woman's eye's went wide with what looked like surprise.

El jumped suddenly as someone took her hand snapping her back to reality. When she turned around she found Mike looking at her.

"What are you looking at?" He asked.

El opened her mouth to answer but she didn't know how she could explain it.

When she looked back out the window towards the woman and found she was in her truck.

"Nothing," El answered, finally looking up at him with a smile, "Just watching the snowfall."

"Okay," Mike said, seeming to just be happy with her, "Everyone is ready to go if you are."

"Yeah," El said and followed after all her friends back outside and got back into the car.

As they pulled away she looked out her window looking at the truck and watched as the woman got out of her and ran into the store.

But the feeling of recognition fainted away as they drove away and she started to talk about random stuff with her friends. And as they pulled into their driveway they went inside the warmth of the house and she and her friends started to put their stuff away and afterward popped in a movie the memory of the red-haired woman was gone as she and Mike sat together in the glow of the T.V her head resting on his shoulder and her friends all around just like old times.


	4. 4  Shot through the head

4

Shot through the head

Ruby

Ruby had simply been putting gas into the truck she had rented after crossing the state border from Missouri when she had felt like someone was watching her. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end at the fear that the men that she had been running from for over a year now had found her somehow, but when she looked up to the window it wasn't the men at all.

No, it wasn't the men. It was the eyes of a teenage girl watching her from the window.

Ruby felt her heartbeat pick up as she opened the door and drove into her truck. For the picture she still had.

She opened the glove box and started digging through it. Old papers, and trash from days of living out of her truck but finally she found it. She grabbed it and raced for the door.

She pushed the door open and looked around but the group was gone.

"Hey did you see that girl?" Ruby asked, going over to the cashier.

"Which one?" The guy asked, looking at her with tired eyes.

"The girl with brown hair."

"Yeah I saw her, " the guy answered, "What about her?"

"Did she look like this?" Ruby said handing him the photo.

He took it and looked at it a moment, "Ummm yeah, like kinda like her."

Ruby let out a breath. She had found Jane.

"You don't happen to know where they live do you?" She asked, taking the photo back.

The man opened his mouth to answer her but she would never know what he would have said as suddenly a hole appeared right between his eyes as the sound of a gunshot rang out behind her.

Ruby couldn't help it. She let out a scream as the man fell to the ground dead and she whipped around to find the same men that had been hunting her like a rabbit. Somehow they had found her once again.

She watched as they raised their guns and pointed them right at her leg but before they could fire a shot off she drove behind one of the shelves, the bullet pinging off the edge of the metal shelf.

Ruby knew they wouldn't be aiming to kill, they needed her after all, but still, that didn't mean much from them.

She was breathing heavily as she looked around knowing they would be on her in only moments.

She spotted something then, a way out of this if she was lucky. From where she was hiding she could see into the back room and they're caked in shadows sat propane tanks.

Ruby let out a shaking breath as she took out her lighter slowly from her back pocket just as she heard footsteps only feet from her.

This was her only chance and she knew it. She jumped out just as one of the men turned the corner and made a run for the back room. She covered her head as she heard the sound of shots fired but somehow none hit her.

As fast as she could she opened the valves, almost falling over herself as her heartbeat out of her chest, feeling she was in a daze, the smell of gas filling the room.

Ruby made a break for the back door then but looked up just in time to watch as one of the men pulled the trigger as they ran after her.

She let out a pained shout as the bullet hit her side but she didn't dare stop as gas filled the room. Holding her side she pushed open the door to the snow-filled night. Ruby swallowed hard as she flicked the lighter on and threw it behind herself.

AN

sorry for not posting sooner but i think 3 chapters makes up for it a little. Thanks for reading, it means a lot to me. If you want to review and give me your thoughts on please feel free, it always helps and honestly makes my day. I hope your all doing well as you can be right now.


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